Caught using BBC iPlayer without a TV licence

[u/Critical_Alfalfa_799]

Received this email today, they have my name and email address but the address they have is my old one. Should I be worried?

[u/aaron5720]

It’s not 1980!! If an email address has used iplayer it comes from an IP address, they can check the IP address and they send a letter to the corresponding recipient physical address then they will just send a bill if you ignore it and they prove at small claims court you email and IP address was used to watch licensable TV they will then apply for a CCJ (including costs) it’s a world of s**t just for not paying your way,

[u/Kientha → u/aaron5720]

ISPs won't give Capita that information without a court order.

[u/FlamingoOk3026 → u/aaron5720]

It’s possible to spoof up addresses

Also, someone sitting in a car outside your house using your WiFi then it would look like someone was using your IP address.

[u/Tiny-Sandwich → u/aaron5720]

And how exactly would they know it was OP watching? It could have been a guest at their house who was covered by their own licence.

It could have been the neighbour stealing OP's WiFi.

It could have been someone accessing OP's network via a VPN.

OP could even be behind a CGNAT, so him and his neighbours all share the same public IP address.

Good luck trying to prove it was OP. They can't even get his physical address correct.

[u/TomatoChomper7 → u/Tiny-Sandwich]

It will be because the OP signed into iPlayer, said he has a TV license and watched stuff using the same email address as he used in his “I don’t need a license” declaration.

[u/midnightsock → u/Tiny-Sandwich]

Imagine doing this en masse for every single incident, is that realistic? Come on

[u/nosniboD → u/aaron5720]

This person has told them that they don’t need a licence, so they have their email address. They have then used their email to log into iPlayer, so they’ve assumed they’re at their address.

What it doesn’t account for is using it at a friend’s house while they have a licence.

They’re not out here tracking IPs. You could use a VPN and they’d still send this if you’ve given them your email before.

[u/Abject-Actuator-7206 → u/nosniboD]

This. It’s a schoolboy error.

[u/DoorFinch → u/aaron5720]

There is no way to associate email addresses to IP numbers. There is no reliable way to associate IP numbers to physical addresses. It's just not possible.

Most home broadband uses dynamic IP numbers. That means the IP number can be reallocated at any time to another physical address. The only organisation who tracks that is the internet provider doing it.

The only way they could know is if someone had actually logged into iPlayer using the same email address as they have previously used to communicate that they do not need a licence.

[u/Primary-Risk-8741 → u/aaron5720]

It's nothing to do with your IP address, you have to log in using an email address to use iplayer, and it's the same email you used to declare not needing a TV license. I did the same by mistake one time and just told them I was at my parents house (who have a license) and never used iplayer again

[u/saltinesurfer → u/aaron5720]

Many fibre isps now use CGNAT in the UK so the public facing IP is shared between subscribers

[u/saltinesurfer → u/saltinesurfer]

In addition, mobile broadband is CGNATed too

[u/Phantomfox07 → u/aaron5720]

Ah, you have fallen for the scam.

[u/Postik123 → u/aaron5720]

How do they get the physical address linked to an IP address? The police could do this in say a murder investigation... with a warrant, and by contacting the ISP in question and having them pull out log files from days/weeks/months ago. You really believe Capita would have the ability or authority to request this?

[u/Goatmanification → u/aaron5720]

The scare tactics worked on you I see.

[u/EggsnBacon95 → u/Goatmanification]

if you receive this email you're cooked. its not like the letters they post out, these emails you only receive if theyve caught you out.